Filled To Brim, 8,049 Watch Ice Flyers In OT Game Friday Against Peoria
By Bill Vilona
Ice Flyers Correspondent
Goaltender Riley Morris burst from the scramble, having the best view and trying to make a convincing case for a disallowed goal.
But to no avail. A 3-2 overtime loss against the Peoria Rivermen left the only void in a memorable Friday night in Ice Flyers history.
In front of a sellout crowd of 8,049 on the $5 ticket weekend, which created an amazing scene at the Pensacola Bay Center, the Ice Flyers believed the game should have been extended, after Peoria’s Joseph Drapluk was credited for a game-winning goal with 2:16 left in overtime.
“It was pushed in (with player’s glove), but you can’t expect (officials) to see that stuff. We don’t have replay to look at,” said Ice Flyers coach Rod Aldoff.
The trio of officials met for a couple minutes, as the Rivermen had exited into their tunnel area. They ruled the goal would stand.
“At the end of the day, we went to overtime and unfortunately a tough way to end,” Aldoff said. “But without replay, if (officials) don’t see it, then they don’t see it.”
Aldoff was more upset about his team being whistled for two separate penalties in the final 5-minutes, 38 seconds of a tied game in regulation play. First, Trey Button was called for interference. Then defenseman Jason Price was called for tripping with just 3:26 left.
It forced the Ice Flyers to kill off two penalties and most of the remaining time with the game on the balance.
“In that type of hockey game, it shouldn’t be done on either team. Let the players decide and go from there,” Aldoff said. “It was just two guys battling. I didn’t think either one of those were penalties. It was a 2-2 game. Let the players finish it. Let the players decide the game.”
The OT loss still earned the Ice Flyers a point and good gauge in facing the defending league champions and current runaway, first-place leader in the Southern Professional Hockey League.
Peoria (27-8-2) has amassed 56 points, eight more than second-place teams Huntsville and Birmingham. The Ice Flyers (19-16-1, 39 points), will get another shot Saturday night in front of another soldout crowd.
“We battled,” Aldoff said. “We have to clean things up defensively. I didn’t like the way we played in our end and how we played away from the puck.
“But we got two nice power play goals and it was a tight game. I would have obviously liked to have finished it and won the game, but we can redeem ourselves (Saturday).
The game included the Ice Flyers creating a special moment with an Air Force pilot surprising his family between periods of a staged shooting competition. More on that below.
Peoria started the scoring with an early first period goal by Cayden Cahill, assisted by former Ice Flyers, Alec Hagaman and Nick Neville, who were part of the Ice Flyers 2021 SPHL President’s Cup championship team.
Ice Flyers captain, now all-time scoring leader Garrett Milan, tied the game in the second period on a power play goal with Price on the assist. Peoria then answered with an unassisted goal early in the third period.
With Milan and Kolten Olynek assisting, the Ice Flyers Nick Leitner tied the game with 13:24 remaining. It remained that way with both teams getting some chances in the final minutes.
The Ice Flyers also got another outstanding performance between the pipes from Morris, who stopped 40 shots in the game. It’s something Aldoff wants to see decreased Saturday.
“We had too many Peoria plays let loose,” he said. “We just weren’t sharp at times. At other times we were very sharp, but this is about being 60 minutes sharp and you have to do it.
“If we are eliminating those opportunities for them, playing great defense, then we will have more time in the offensive end. It’s very simple.”
GAME NOTABLES
— U.S. Air Force captain Paul Grow was hidden behind a board in the net during the first intermission.
With his wife, Malinda, and daughter Harley, invited out on the ice for what they thought was a special honor to shoot a couple pucks at the net, after being awarded a jersey Grow was revealed as Harley jumped into his arms in excitement.
Grow has served 16 years in the U.S. Air Force with 10 deployments and currently serves as an osprey pilot.
— Members of American Magic, the USA yacht racing team that is training in Pensacola for the 37th America’s Cup competition in Barcelona, Spain in 2024, was honored before the game and participated in the ceremonial puck drop.
American Magic has found its training home in Pensacola for the last several years and there is a plan for a permanent facility to be built for the New York Yacht Club based team.
— For the first time in team history, the Ice Flyers announced in early afternoon Friday that both of their weekend $5 ticket games were sellouts. In the past, the Friday game has been a near sellout, but never a complete one like this time and never with both games being sold out in such advance notice.
WANT TO FOLLOW?
WHAT: Pensacola Ice Flyers Hock
WHO: Peoria Rivermen vs. Ice Flyers
WHEN: Saturday, 7:05 p.m.
WHERE: Pensacola Bay Center
TICKETS: Game is sold out
INFO: www.iceflyers.com
RADIO: Fox Sports Pensacola (101.1 FM and 1450 AM)
TV: YurView (available to Cox Communications subscribers)
ONLINE STREAMING: www.hockeytv.com/league/sphl/upcoming.
